Engaging second language teachers in videoconference-integrated exchanges: towards a social constructivist perspective

Download

Date

Author

Metadata

Abstract

The questions addressed in this study arose from an earlier project which
attempted to provide videoconferencing opportunities for Second Language (SL)
teachers to engaging in bilingual “virtual exchanges” for their students (hereafter
referred to as “eTandem videoconferencing”). This investigation was initially
motivated by the interest on discovering why these teachers and their students
did not take the opportunity to participate in the synchronous part of the
exchanges.
This qualitative study reports on the developmental paths experienced by twenty
SL teachers from the US, the UK, Switzerland and Spain and their pupils in the
process. It particularly aims to discover what teachers' roles emerge in the
process. The research also focuses on how these teachers’ practices are consistent
with a more social constructivist approach to Computer Assisted Language
Learning.
The investigation builds on Hartnell-Young’s theoretical model (2003) of
teachers’ roles where computers are used. Data collection involves an initial
survey, observation of teachers and students before, during and after the
exchanges and video-stimulated recall interviews with the teachers. The research
centres on critical incidents experienced by these teachers. Hugues' model (2009)
of the expanded critical incident approach provides the methodological
framework. In line with her model, the study has created a multifaceted word
picture of these teachers, further characterised by a condensed set of critical
findings.
The teachers’ accounts reveal several incidents that inhibited or supported the
teachers’ development in terms of how they planned the learning environment
regarding the physical space, the virtual setting and the social environment and
in terms of how they mediated the implementation of the exchanges towards a
more interactive approach. In doing so, this investigation adds to the knowledge
base available to educators and researchers by offering greater understanding
about these SL teachers’ particular experiences.